


Side By Side

by myfinalpleasure



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: 10/10, Btw there is not underage sex, But I promise it's not all pedo-y, I just love the marvel characters, I realized that while writing this, M/M, Spideypool - Freeform, Superfamily (Marvel), Superhusbands (Marvel), Tony and Steve adopt Peter, Tony has mental issues no one addresses in the movies in a positive way to help him, all of them - Freeform, also all the avengers have one or both dead parents, and Wade is 21 (let's say that makes sense even though it doesn't), and Wade will come in, and they'll fall in love eventually, itll be great, like Peter is fifteen to begin with, superfamily is my kink
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-16
Updated: 2017-07-16
Packaged: 2018-12-02 21:21:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11517720
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myfinalpleasure/pseuds/myfinalpleasure
Summary: When Tony offered Peter a place in the Avengers tower, who knew it would lead to him finally having the family he never had?But of course, the Avengers can't catch a break, and suddenly Loki is back and this time brought a dangerous sorceress with him. Will Steve and Tony be able to protect Peter and stop the city falling into the wrong hands?--A Superfamily/SpideyPool fic. Takes place right after Age of Ultron. Some information or timeline stuff might be a little off, but, chill, it's a fanfic.





	1. Chapter 1

A shrill cry sounded through the dark corridors of the Avenger's tower.   
Tony lay in bed, wide awake with his thoughts when he heard it. He sat up, not quite sure if what he heard was his head or reality. He listened for a moment before another yell echoed.   
Peter.   
Tony stood up quickly and hurried down the hall and flung open Peter's door.   
The teenager was thrashing in his bed, soaked in sweat and mumbling and crying.   
Tony sat on the bed and hesitated before placing a hand on the boy's arm.   
"Hey, kid. Kid." He shook him gently.   
Peter's eyes opened suddenly as his breath hitched. He sat up, wiping the tears from his face.   
"Mr. Stark, sir, I- I'm sorry, I didn't mean.."   
"It's ok, kid. We all get nightmares."   
"I woke you up."   
"I was awake anyways." Tony pointed at his head. "Always ticking, this thing. You all good? You want a drink? Scotch or something?"   
Peter pursed his lips. "I'm only fifteen, s-sir."   
"Alright," Tony shrugged and stood up. "You all good though?"   
Peter nodded, and wiped his nose on his sleeve. "Yes, thank you, Mr. Stark." He watched the man leave his room, and he laid back into his pillow.   
Peter sighed, and rubbed his head. It had been a month and a half since the fire had burnt down his apartment and caused him the loss of his beloved Aunt May. The only good thing out of the situation is that Peter hoped May and Ben were together again.   
Since Peter had no family to take him in, Tony invited him to stay with the Avengers, after confronting him about being Spider-Man. 

\--

"You're Peter Parker?"   
"Yes, sir. I'm P-Park- Peter Parker."   
Tony put his sunglasses on and leaned back into his chair. "Well thank you for coming down to my office, Peter. I'm sorry to hear about your aunt, I can imagine what you're going through."   
Peter stiffened a little. "Thank you."   
"The reason I called you down here," Tony continued, "and I hope Happy was nice to you, was because I hear you're a bit of a child genius. A mini me, I suppose. Less cool, of course, but still. And also, because, I believe you're the spider..thing, that's been doing odd jobs around Queens."   
Peter swallowed and crossed his arms. He could feel a small sweat build on his forehead as he smiled and stuttered. "W-what?"   
Tony nodded at Peter. "I bet if we cracked open your backpack we would find your little tights and goggles."   
"Not goggles, they-" Peter stopped himself. "Listen, Mr. Stark, I really don't-" he stopped as he watched Tony's face smirk. "Mr. Stark, sir, you can't tell anyone."   
"What makes you think I'll tell anyone?"   
"Well, sir, you announced Iron Man's identity on the news, and then also told everyone your personal house address, so, I mean.."   
Tony took his glasses off and put his arms on his desk. "Listen, kid, I'm offering you a job. And a home. As far as I understand, you're currently a fourteen year old-"   
"Fifteen."  
"-fifteen, that's what I said, without a family, job, or house. The Avengers could use someone like you. A fresh face. We've got some other new recruits that we sort of picked up with our mission with Ultron last week, which was, y'know, my bad, but we got a few new members from it."   
Peter sat with his hands clasped together in his lap. He was trying not to leap with joy in front of his personal hero. Train with the Avengers? Live with the Avengers? Work for Mr. Stark? It was a dream come true, except he wished that it wasn't under these circumstances.  
"Mr. Stark, that would be amazing. Thank you so much, I don't even know what to say, I-"   
"Save the thanks yous and all that for later." Tony stood up. "Happy will help you bring your stuff to the tower."   
"I don't have anything other than what's in my backpack." Peter said softly.   
Tony looked sympathetic for a moment, before collecting himself and patting the teenager on the back. "Then Happy will take you shopping. Probably should take a shower first, though."   
Peter smelled his shirt and scrunched his nose up a little.   
And thus began his life with the Avengers.

\--

"Was that Peter making all that noise last night?" Steve sipped his coffee and frowned. "Old pot?"   
"Only from yesterday. Reheated." Tony shrugged. "And yeah, the kid was having some bad dreams."   
"Hmm," Cap rubbed his chin. "Maybe we should get him some therapy."   
"What are we, his parents? No, he'll be fine. He just needs some time."   
Steve face hardened. "Tony, I think you of all people ought to be a little more kind to the situation. We all have our own problems, and we deal with it in our own ways, but he's just a kid. What, fifteen, sixteen? He's too young. Clint's got Wanda doing therapy with Sam, maybe Peter can try it, too."   
Tony shrugged and downed his coffee. "Whatever. If you want to, that's up to you."   
"You're the one who brought him into the tower, Tony. You're responsible for him."   
"This is a lot for me, okay?" Tony bit his cheek. "I'm still trying to smooth over what happened with Ultron, so if you and the team can help with the kid, great. I didn't sign up for babysitting when I invited him here. He's supposed to be an Avenger in training, if you will. Not someone who needs their hand held."   
Steve shook his head. "Then maybe, Tony, you should have considered that before bringing a kid into the tower." 

\--

"Head down! Dodge! Back up!"   
Peter listened carefully to Natasha's instructions as he jumped around, avoiding holographic bad guys. He suddenly slipped from a wall, and the holograms stopped.   
"Dead. Again." Natasha leaned again the doorway, picking at a thread on her track pants.   
"Can-can I take a break?" Peter kneeled over, placing his hands on his knees.   
"Sure," Nat smirked and walked forward, "after you've fought me."   
"Oh-" Peter sighed heavily, and wiped his damp curls from his face. "It's only nine thirty, we have all day to train."   
"Working him hard?"   
Both turned to see Steve standing in the doorway.   
"Yeah, she is." Peter tried to play it cool. "But like, I don't mind, it's f-fine."   
"Can I steal you for a moment, Peter?" Steve offered a warm smile and held the door open.   
Peter quickly left the training room, then turned to face the captain. He crossed his arms nervously and shrugged. "What's..uh, what's up?"   
"Well, I wanted to talk to you." Steve cleared his throat. "I understand that everything that's happened to you has been very difficult. Nobody is judging you for having emotions and natural responses to the trauma you've been through, and I apologize that nobody has really said anything yet."   
"Well, Mr. Stark came to my room last night because.." Peter trailed off. "I guess you heard. I hope I didn't wake anyone up."   
"Tony failed to mention that he actually went to check on you." Steve tried to hide a small smile. Tony did care after all. "Either way, Peter, I don't want you to feel bad. I want to help you. We want to help you. We've all had our share of PTSD, and Sam did group therapy before he joined the team, and right now he's helping Wanda cope with the loss of her brother. If you're willing, he can meet with you, too. But it's up to you."   
Peter looked at his feet. Would it really help? The nightmares were getting worse, nightmares of reliving Ben's death, nightmares of seeing May in the fire-  
"I'll do it." Peter stood up straight again. "Thank you, Captain. I-I want to get better. I want to make Mr. Stark proud."   
"You already have, even if he doesn't really show it." Steve grinned and put an arm around Peter. "And don't worry, things are just getting started."


	2. Chapter 2

Sam Wilson sat in his chair, watching Peter get settled into his own seat.   
"Mr. Wilson, it's really kind of you to see me and all."   
Sam smiled. "No need to thank me, Peter. And call me Sam, none of that 'sir' or 'mister'. Save that for Tony."   
Peter nodded and crossed his arms. "I-okay. Sure."   
"So, where should we start? What would you like to talk about first?"   
"I'm not sure. What do you want me to talk about?"   
Again, Sam smiled. "Why don't you start off easy, kid? Tell me about yourself, about what's happened."   
Taking a deep breath, Peter told the Falcon about everything that happened in his life so far. His parents' death, the bullying at school, getting bitten by the spider and becoming Spider-Man, not being able to save his uncle, the fire and death of his aunt.   
"And I guess that's about it." Peter looked at his hands, which were twitching nervously.   
Sam breathed deeply. "And how old are you again?"   
"Fifteen."   
"Shit," Sam shook his head. "Well, look, I'm not going to sugar coat some big long thing about how life will get better because that's not how life is. There will always be stuff that will give you bad dreams, that will stay with you, especially when you're saving lives. But, there's always going to be good stuff to balance it out, too. No kid should have to go through what you've gone through, but hell," Sam grinned, "you're one badass. And now you're one of the team."   
Peter blushed a little and scratched the back of his head. "Thank you, that..uh, that means a lot." 

\--

"So, Spidey has some pretty bad anxiety issues. Probably some PTSD. I mean," Sam shrugged. "I'm not a doctor or anything, but he talked to me about having episodes and I think it's pretty serious."   
Steve sighed. "Peter's a good kid, but Tony never should have brought him here. It's too much."   
"You're probably right about that."   
"So what should we do?"   
Sam tilted his head. "I suppose he can keep coming to talk to me, and I'll work some of my therapeutic magic on him. Medicine won't solve anything, so I don't think taking him to a doctor is a good idea."   
"Yeah, pumping him full of drugs will only make things worse." Steve rubbed his chin.   
"Who's getting pumped full of drugs?" Tony walked into the room, one of his Iron Man gloves on his hand and a screwdriver in his other. Steve couldn't help but notice the grease stains on his biceps and the messy, dark hair that fell onto his forehead.   
"Enough of that," Steve told himself.  
Vision followed the billionaire into the room.   
Steve lowered his voice. "Tony, can I talk to you, please? Alone?"   
"I suppose," he pulled the screwdriver out of the glove. "Viz, give the Cap and I a moment, alright?"   
Vision nodded politely and flew through the wall into the room over. Sam cleared his throat and began towards the elevator.   
"Tony, I got a phone call this morning from the court. They said that it's extremely important that someone comes down to sign custody for Peter to become his legal guardian."   
"Yep," Tony nodded and pulled the machine off his hand. "And why is this relevant to me?"   
"Because, and we discussed this yesterday, you have an obligation to-"  
"Okay, okay." He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "The court knows better than to put a kid in my care though."   
"Well, yes," Steve withheld a smirk. "But I talked to them, explained the housing situation and how there are quite a few responsible adults who also live on the premises and are willing to help out. I mean, he's a teenager, at least he's not a toddler."   
"What did they say to that?" Tony walked past Steve into the kitchen and poured himself a protein drink.   
"They said they were alright with it. But, there's a catch. Two catches, I suppose."   
"Which are?"   
Steve cleared his throat. "One, they understand that by agreeing to be his guardian that you are less of a father and more of a..supporter. Here to help him financially and what not. But, the case worker said she would feel more comfortable knowing there was a second guardian signed on just in case something happened to you, being that your job is quite dangerous. And two, on that note, she wants to inspect Peter's 'living' quarters to make sure that he would be safe in the event of an attack on the tower or something."   
"So," Tony leaned forward against the counter. "Let me get this straight. This woman, case worker, whatever, is okay with Peter living here, as long as his room is a bomb shelter, there's responsible adults other than me here, one of them also signing onto being a guardian, in case I die?"   
Steve chuckled out his nose. "Yeah, to sum it up."   
"So who gets to play house with me and Peter then? Clint?"   
"Actually," Cap swallowed hard and cocked his head. "I was thinking I would do it."   
"What?"   
"Clint has basically adopted Wanda and already has three kids of his own and a wife, Sam and Natasha are not interested, Vision legally can't, Thor is a no, Bruce ran away...shall I go on?"   
Tony stood silently, them began to laugh. He patted Steve's shoulder and shrugged. "Alright, Cap. So when is this woman coming over?"   
"Next week. She'll check out the premises and bring the papers for us to sign."

\--

Peter sat on the roof of the building across from the remains of his old apartment. He kicked his red boots back and forth as he looked down at his mask.   
He remembered sitting in class when it happened. He could still remember it so clearly. 

\--

The teacher rambled on about slopes and angles while Peter quietly took notes. He looked to his left, where Ned was practically drooling on his textbook.   
The classroom door opened and the principle walked in, pale faced.   
"I need to see Mr. Parker, please."   
"We're in the middle of a lesson-"   
"It's an emergency."   
Peter felt his cheeks grow warm as everyone turned to look at him for a reaction. He turned to his best friend, who looked concerned. Quietly, Peter stood up and grabbed his books and bag and followed the principle out.   
"Peter," he said as they walked down the hallway. "There's- there's been a fire. In your complex."   
Peter stopped walking and turned to face the man. "What? Shi- oh, i-is everyone okay? Is May okay? Is she here?"   
"Not exactly,"   
"What does that mean? Is she..is she hurt?" He could feel the years welling up in his eyes as he watched his principle shake his head.   
"I'm so sorry, Peter. She's gone." 

\--

Peter looked up at the sky as a large beam of light struck the ground a few miles away.   
"Thor?" He stood up and pulled on his homemade mask, then shot a web to the building over.   
He was a little excited, he had yet to meet the God of thunder. He was, according to the other Avengers, very loud and jolly.  
He stopped short on a roof about fifty feet from where the light had landed.   
The grass was burnt and to the side stood a woman and a man.   
"Who are they?" Peter whispered, then began to climb down the building to get a better look. The woman was tall and had long blonde hair cascading down her back. Peter had never seen her before.   
The man was also tall, and had black hair and-  
"Loki!" Peter suddenly exclaimed, and suddenly lost his grip as he fell and hit back first into a group of bushes. He quickly stood up and brushed himself off. Turning around, he saw both Loki and the woman staring at him in amusement.   
"And who might you be?" Loki tilted his head to the side.   
"I'm S-Spider-Man." He tried to sound heroic.  "Hey, aren't you supposed to be locked up o-or something? And who's your friend?"   
"I didn't come here for chit chat, Loki." The woman raised her hands and green orbs of light appeared around them. "Out of my way, Boy of Spiders."   
Peter braced to be hit with the magic she held, when suddenly a blast of heat hit the ground between them.   
They all looked up to see Iron Man hovering in the air, with Clint and Natasha close behind on a motorcycle.    
"Oh, hey Mr. Stark!" Peter waved. "These guys, they just, they came outta nowhere! Well, on a light from the sky, and I don't know who she is, but that's Loki, and-"   
"Alright, thanks, kid." Tony butted in and landed the suit. "Go home."   
Peter walked up to the suit. "But-"   
"But nothing. Go home. You're not ready for this."   
"Mr. Stark, I-"   
"Peter, please." Tony flipped up his mask and looked down at Spider-Man. "Loki is dangerous, and you're not even in a proper suit. Please, go home. We'll talk when I get back, okay, kid?"   
Peter hesitated, then nodded. "Okay, Mr. Stark."   
Tony watched as the teenager swung away, then turned his attention back on the two intruders, who had been waiting surprisingly patiently.   
"What are you doing back here, Loki?" Natasha stepped off her motorbike. "Where's Thor?"   
"My foolish brother is far from the reaches of your realm." The God spat back. "Never to return."   
"He's dead?" Clint frowned, trying hold the shake from his voice.   
"Soon to be." The blonde woman said cooly.   
Tony smirked under his mask. "Hello, and who might you be? Single, I hope." He joked, then looked at his team mates for a response. They both looked unpleased.   
"Simply the most powerful sorceress in the nine realms, Iron Man." She responded. "And it is I who has business on Midgard, not the Trickster."   
"Yes, I'm afraid I have a date to watch my brother and a fellow friend of yours in battle."   
"A friend of ours?" Natasha cocked her head. "You don't mean..?"   
"Banner has been sent to the same location as my brother, yes." Loki grinned. "Although I agreed to accompany an old friend and help her..set up camp here before I leave."   
"How nice of you," Tony retorted sarcastically. "You clearly have some sort of grand plan, why don't you spare us the bruises and cuts and tell us what you're going to do, we'll arrest you, and back up to Asgard you go without a fight?"   
"You'll have to kill me first, Anthony Stark." The woman brought her hands up to eye level.   
"Get down!" Clint fired an explosive arrow towards the Asgardians and the heroes ducked as a wave of heat flew at them.   
A beam of green energy soared through the smoke and hit Tony's suit, causing him to fly backwards into a building.   
"Shit, she's strong. FRIDAY, what's she using?"   
The AI came to life and scanned the woman.   
"Pure magic, it seems. No tricks or science."   
"No science are two words that don't belong together," Tony mumbled as he fired his repulser rays at Loki, who had pulled up some sort of magic spear.   
Clint fired another explosive arrow at the woman, followed by a net arrow.   
She dodged the first, and blasted the second with a green bolt.   
"Dammit, we need backup, Tony!" Natasha yelled from the cover of her motorbike. She fired an electric charge from one of her fancy guns.   
"You're right," Tony turned on his comm. "Cap!" 

\--

Steve sat in one of the control rooms of the Avengers Tower.  
"So anyways, he told me to go home."   
"That was probably for the best, Peter. I know he's working on a proper suit for you, and once you get some more training, you can start coming on missions."   
"Cap!"   
Steve quickly spun his chair around and turned on the microphone. "Stark, I'm here. Give me an update."  
"So," Tony grunted into the comm. "Loki is here right outside of Queens, and he's brought a pretty powerful friend. Shit! Clint, stop using those damn boomerang arrows!"   
"Do you need backup?" Steve leaned in closer.   
"No, I thought I would call to check in with you, hun." Tony replied. "Yes, we need backup. Bring Wanda, Vision, and Rhodey. Now. Tony out."   
Steve stood up, and Peter grabbed his arm.   
"Wait, that's everyone but me. Take me, too."   
"Sam isn't coming."   
"Sam isn't here right now, he's at the Avenger's storage building."   
The captain sighed and pulled his arm away from Peter. "I'm sorry. Next time, okay? Stay safe, we'll be back soon."   
Peter watched sadly as Steve jogged out of the room, leaving him completely alone in the tower.


	3. Chapter 3

"Listen, lady, I feel like if you put the magic hands down we can talk and come to an agreement." Tony blasted the woman's beams as they flew at him.   
She snarled and created some sort of force field around herself and Loki.   
"Great," Tony muttered. "Stand back, guys, I'm bringing out the big guns."   
He shot a ray from the repulser on the chest of his suit, but it didn't even faze the shield.   
Loki shot a blast of magic from his spear into the building behind Iron Man.   
"Stark, look out!" Natasha stood up and watched the building's walls crumple and crash onto Tony.   
Clint rushed to aid his friend, while Natasha covered him by shooting multiple stun rounds towards the green wall that separated the villains from the heroes.    
"Tony!" Clint looked at the pile of rubble.  
Underneath, Tony could hear someone calling him. The force of the multiple slabs of concrete and brick crushed his chest and legs. He gasped for air, and heard another voice.   
"Tony! Tony!"   
"Cap," he wheezed. The suit's lights flickered as he felt the weight becoming less and less heavy. Suddenly, Tony could see light, and he saw Steve, in his suit, wincing and struggling as he pulled bits of building off of him.   
"Just in time, Rogers," Tony tried to move but felt a sharp pain in his chest. "FRIDAY, any damage?"   
Steve helped Tony up gently, and pulled his mask up to reveal a bloodied face underneath.   
"Two broken ribs, a bloody nose, and a fracture in your ankle." The AI responded promptly.   
"You'll have to excuse us," Loki's voice suddenly sounded above the noise of the fight. "We must be off now."  
The woman laughed and they were gone. Into thin air.   
"Well, shit." Rhodey flipped his mask up. "Are you okay, Tony?"   
"I'll bounce back."   
"Lean your weight on me," Steve placed his shoulder under the armpit of the suit. "Let's get you back quickly." 

\--

 

Peter sat in one of the tower's many rec rooms, watching a film in Spanish.   
"'No me gusta', I know what that means." He told himself triumphantly. "Basically fluent, right, FRIDAY?"   
"If you think so,"   
"Peter,"   
Peter gasped loudly as he whipped around to see Vision standing in the doorway.   
"Oh my-" Peter clutched his chest. "You scared me."   
"Captain Rogers wishes to inform you that we have returned."   
Peter jumped off the couch clumsily and a smile spread on his face. "What happened? Did you guys stop them? Who was that woman? Is everyone okay?"   
"We arrived just in time to see Loki and his partner teleport to some untraceable place. We did not find the identity of the woman, and everyone is generally alright."   
"Generally?"   
"Tony has injured himself."   
"M-Mr. Stark? Where is he? Can I see him?"   
Vision nodded. "Don't be worried, though, Peter. He'll be alright."

\--

Steve sat on the edge of Tony's bed as the doctor finished the bandaging.   
"I would highly suggest not doing any extensive work or anything else that would cause you stress until you heal completely. I'll check on you soon."   
As she walked out, Tony groaned and placed his palms on his eyes.   
"How could this get any worse?"   
"Mr. Stark!"   
Steve hid his smile as the teenager rushed into the room.   
"Are you okay?"   
Tony removed his hands from his face. "Yeah, kid, I'm fine. Calm down."   
"I'm sorry, I- I was just worried." Peter stepped back from the bed.   
"That's very kind of you to be concerned." Steve offered a warm grin. "He'll be fine, just a couple of cracked ribs."   
"'Just'," Tony mumbled sarcastically.   
"That's good," Peter nodded. "I guess, uh, I'll leave you to rest." He pointed to the door. "I, uh..yeah. Okay. Goodnight, Mr. Stark, Captain."   
"Actually," Steve cleared his throat and Peter turned on his heel. "Tony and I wanted to discuss something with you."   
"Am I in trouble or something?" Peter asked nervously.  
Tony rolled over and groaned.   
Steve chuckled. "Not at all, kid. We just wanted to talk to you. Adult to mature teenager."   
Peter sat on the dresser across from the bed and crossed his ankles as he swung his feet.   
"So," the captain began. "As you may understand, you live with the Avengers now, but none of us have legal guardianship over you."   
Peter nodded along.   
Steve leaned forward onto his knees. "And Tony is the one who was originally going to sign the papers, but they wanted a second guardian, just in case something were to happen to one, there would be another. And, if you're okay with it, Tony and I are going to be signing next week."   
Peter looked starstruck as he looked at Steve. "Are you serious?"   
"Why would he lie?" Tony said from under a pillow.   
"Oh my gosh, this- this is literally the coolest," Peter jumped from the dresser and paced back and forth. He ran his fingers through his curls and laughed. "I get to be adopted by Iron Man and Captain America? Holy shit!"   
"Peter-" Steve raised an eyebrow.   
"Sorry, sorry," Peter blushed. "But this is so amazing! Wait, do you guys have to get married or something?"   
"No, no, no-" both men spoke at once.   
"Right, right, stupid question." The teenager stopped pacing and smiled widely. "Guys, this is..this is the best. Thank you. Thank you so much for letting me live here and-and for agreeing to help me, this means so much and-"  
"Don't mention it, kid." Tony sat up, and Steve reached out a hand to steady his friend.   
"You're a good kid, Peter. You're smart and talented, we just want to make sure you get the life you deserve." Steve explained. "Anyways, you should go convince someone to cook something for you, or  go make some toast or something, I'm not going to have time to make dinner."   
"Okay, sure, thanks, Captain." Peter nodded.   
"And Peter?" Steve called out.  
The boy turned around in the doorway. "Yeah?"   
"You can probably call us Steve and Tony."   
Peter nodded and crossed his arms. "Yeah, yeah, sure. I can do that."   
Tony sighed heavily as they watched him go. "Good talk, Cap."   
"I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not."   
"It's come to that?"   
"It's your own fault."   
They both chuckled, and Steve helped lay Tony back down.   
"So you're not cooking for the team tonight? Too bummed out?"   
Steve shrugged. "I'm not their mother. They can figure out how to make pasta or something. If you're hungry-"  
"No, I'm fine." Tony settled more comfortably into his pillows. "I don't eat a lot. Too.. I don't know, depressed?"   
"You should eat something," Steve prompted. "I mean, I know things haven't been great since Pepper-"   
"Please don't." Tony put up a hand. "I'm over her, it's not that. I just..get nightmares and stuff. Insomnia. Panic attacks. I had FRIDAY look up my symptoms, it's normal for someone like me."   
"Nobody is judging you, Tony. I can't imagine what you've been through."   
"Kidnapping, torture, some anxiety and bad dreams isn't compared to being frozen in ice for a few dozen years."   
Steve shook his head. "Tony, you can't compare your problems to someone else's. No matter how much worse someone else may have been through, that isn't going to stop what you're feeling and experiencing."   
Tony wiped a stray tear. "Jesus, Cap, you sound like a shrink. Maybe you should be doing the sessions with Peter."   
"I'm serious, Tony."   
"I know."   
"Are you going to be okay? When was the last time you slept?"   
Tony looked down and shrugged. "I napped earlier. It's fine, Rogers, really."   
"You don't seem fine. I should stay to make sure you fall asleep, no nightmares involved." Steve watched Tony. He was surprised Stark was being so open with him. It must have been the shock or something. "Do you want me to stay?"   
"Yes."   
The captain craned his head a little, confused. Did the great Tony Stark just say yes? Steve hadn't expected that.   
Tony pushed aside the blanket beside him and patted the spot. "Well, come on."   
"What?"   
"Come here." Tony patted the spot again, and hesitantly, Steve slipped his boots off and climbed over beside the other man.   
He nearly died of heart palpitations when Tony rest his head against the super soldier. Both were silent for a solid five minutes, with only the sound of their breathing.   
"Tell me something nice."   
"Pardon?" Steve frowned.   
"Indulge me, Rogers. Tell me something nice." Tony adjusted himself slightly.   
"Okay," Steve thought for a moment. "Before the serum, before the fame and glory, I was just a scrawny kid with a dream. I had no friends except Bucky-"  
"This being the same Bucky that almost killed you not so long ago?"  
"Yes, okay, pay attention. One day, Buck heard about this huge futuristic convention going on, hosted by your father."   
"I don't want to hear about Howard, Rogers. This is the opposite of nice."   
"Just listen. We got to the convention, and Bucky was a catch, and he had brought along two girls with him. One of them was intended for me, but they weren't terribly interested. Anyways, your father comes on stage, looking all suave and smart, he kisses a stage girl and in confidence tells us about this flying car he's invented. I was amazed. I couldn't believe it. He started the car, and it suddenly sparked and fell back onto the stage. It was pretty funny," Steve smiled, remembering the moment when the crowd gasped, but then laughed and clapped.   
A few moments passed, and the room was silent.   
"Tony?"   
Steve sat up just enough to be able to look at Tony's face and see him fast asleep. Steve decided he didn't want to disturb him, so he leaned back gently and placed his arm around the smaller man.   
"FRIDAY, turn out the lights." 

\--

"I can cook." Vision cleared his throat. "I mean, I won't be eating the meal, but I would appreciate the opportunity to connect with the rest of the team and have some sort of feeling of a human activity."   
"We don't see you as anything but human, Viz." Wanda said softly.   
"Um, I do," Sam spoke up. "No offence, man. But, y'know, you're a robot."  
"Android." Vision corrected.   
"Isn't that the same thing?" Clint winced from his spot on the couch beside Natasha, who was stitching a cut on his arm.   
"Actually," Peter piped in, "a robot is just a robot, like wires and controls and stuff. Androids are more human physically, and can mimic human emotions.  Advanced ones can sometimes even apparently..well, feel."   
"What's a cyborg then?" Rhodey asked from behind his magazine, which had a picture of War Machine on the front.   
"It's half human, half robot, physically." Peter explained.   
Everyone nodded and made noises of recognition.   
"Shall I cook, then?" Vision questioned after a beat.   
"Yes, go ahead," Wanda touched his arm. "We trust you. If you need a taste tester, I'm glad to offer my assistance."   
Peter's phone began to ring, and he quickly left the room to answer it.   
"Hello?"   
"Peter, I lost my English notes and you know how crabby Mrs. Knoyts gets first thing on Monday mornings. I can't deal with that."   
"Ned, are you asking me on Sunday evening for the notes to the homework from last week?"   
"Yes."  
"Okay, lemme send you a picture of them."   
"You're a life saver, Pete." Ned laughed in relief.   
"I know," Peter smiled as he searched his binder. "Oh- holy- Ned! You're not going to believe this!"   
"What? You got tickets to San Diego comic con? They released a new trailer for the next Star Wars movie? Natalie Portman posed naked for a-"  
"No!" Peter laughed and sat back against his wall. "Mr. Stark is signing forms next week to become my legal guardian."   
The sound of choking and coughing came from the other line and Peter held the phone away from his ear.  
"Are you serious?" Ned finally wheezed. "Like, actually? You're becoming a billionaire's son?"   
"Not his son," Peter laid down on his back and hung upside down from his bed. "Like..his student or something. I dunno."   
"Where are you going to live? I thought his house was destroyed."   
"I'm living in..uh, the Avenger's Tower." He lowered his voice.   
"What?" Ned exclaimed, "you're joking. You have to be joking. Are you there right now?"   
"Um, yeah." Peter laughed nervously.   
"Oh..my..god. This is amazing. Have you seen Black Widow in the shower rooms?"   
"I'm pretty sure she has her own bathroom, Ned."   
Suddenly a fire alarm went off somewhere on the floor, and Peter covered his ears. "Ned, I've gotta go! I'll text you!"   
"Wait, you didn't send me the-"  
Peter rushed out of his room to find Natasha opening windows and Wanda containing a fire on the stove using her magic. Vision was flying around to turn off the fire alarms, and Sam was scraping burnt food off a pan into the rubbish bin.   
"I apologize dearly, I put the flame on too high." Vision landed back on the floor.   
"It's okay, bud." Clint stood up from the couch. "I'll order takeout. Is Chinese fine?"   
"That sounds great," Wanda smiled.


	4. Chapter 4

Tony groaned quietly in pain as his eyes slowly opened. He shifted and felt sharp pains in his lungs and side.  
"Dammit," he breathed heavily, but his breath hitched as he suddenly became aware of the body he was basically lying on.   
Gently, to not wake the other man up, Tony reached over to the bed side table and switched on the lamp. Sitting up slowly, he turned to see Cap, still in his uniform, minus the helmet, boots, and gloves, leaned back into the pillows with his arm around Tony.   
Steve's face was peaceful, calm, and beautiful in a very soft way.   
Handsome.  
Tony looked at the man's fair skin and gentle lips, his slightly messy blonde hair and strong jaw.   
Very handsome indeed.  
What could Tony do but switch the light back off and once again rest himself in the protective arms of his teammate? 

\--

As Peter slung his backpack over his shoulder he suddenly froze.   
It was 8:03, around the time he usually left for school, and Happy usually drove him, but Happy was currently away and didn't have a replacement.  
"Great," the teenager muttered. Maybe Steve could drive him.   
"FRIDAY, is Captain Rogers awake?"   
His voice felt extremely loud compared to the current quietness of the tower's corridors.   
"The captain is still in Mr. Stark's temporary sleeping quarters." FRIDAY replied.   
"He's what?" Peter frowned, and made his way in the elevator to the floor under, where the med bay rooms were.   
Slowly turning the doorknob, Peter quietly opened the door to the room that Tony had been placed in the day before.   
His eyes widened slightly at seeing the two men in the bed sleeping in each other's arms. Feeling embarrassed, Peter shut the door and sighed.  
"FRIDAY, are any of the team awake?"   
"I am,"   
Peter arm hair raised as he turned around quickly to see Rhodey slipping on a leather jacket.   
"I'll drive you."   
"Oh, yeah, s-sure." Peter felt his cheeks turn pink. Had Rhodey seen him in Tony's room? Had Rhodey seen what was in the room, too? Was there something going on that only Peter didn't know about?   
"I went to tell Tony I was leaving for a conference, assuming he would be awake," Rhodey explained as he began walking towards the elevator. "I didn't expect to see Cap in his bed. Don't think too much of it, I don't see anything actually happening."   
"R-right."   
"Not saying there's anything wrong with it because they're dudes."   
"Yeah- uh, no."   
"Because that's fine, and Tony, well, he does what he wants. Guys, girls-"  
"Y-yep." Peter crossed his arms and tapped his foot.   
"I just don't want you thinking I'm against..gay..people or whatever. I just don't think Cap will put up with Tony's bullshit, y'know?"   
The elevator doors opened and they stepped inside.   
"From footage I've seen and articles I've read," Peter cleared his throat but spoke just as quietly. "I understand that Mr. Stark's..bs, is often triggered by mental illness?"   
"Listen," Rhodey huffed, "I get that, but like, he's pretty immature, Peter. I love him to bits, but he still needs to get his act together, no matter what's going on upstairs."   
Peter wanted to protest, explaining that it wasn't fair, but he knew better, so he closed his mouth and kept it to himself.

\--

The door to Xavier's school opened to reveal Negasonic standing in the doorway.  
"Seriously, what the fuck." Deadpool laughed loudly. "Furiosa! Why is it literally always you answering the door?"   
"Don't call me that." She snapped her gum.  
"Sorry, Nuclear, adolescent..whatever the fuck you all yourself."   
"Hey, douchebag, don't swear while you're in here, okay? Xavier tries to keep it on the down low."   
Wade huffed through the mask of his suit. "It's me you're worried about? You've got Hugh Jackman hidden away somewhere in here with a wide range of cusses and I'm the one you go after?" he walked in and looked up and down the hallway. "Do you have a normal name that's easier and quicker to say?"   
"Ellie." The girl pulled out her phone to check her lipstick in her front camera.   
"Huh," he cocked his head. "Wouldn't have pinned you for an Ellie."   
"Why are you here?"   
"Oh, right." Wade reached into the belt of his suit and pulled out a small notebook. He stood beside Ellie and flipped through the pages, which were full of pictures of Spider-Man. There were little hearts and quotes drawn on the pages in pen and crayon.   
"This is Spider-Man." Deadpool explained.  
"Yeah, I know who he is." She huffed. "What's this, you're stalking him?"   
"No, not stalking." He scoffed. "I've just fallen in love with him, that's all. I was wondering how I could get ahold of him, y'know? Is he a student here?"   
"No, he's not," she took the book from Wade's hand and leafed through it again. "Boy, do I feel bad for him. What happened to that chick we just went through all that trouble to save?"   
"Vanessa?" Wade shrugged. "She couldn't deal with all.." he gestured to himself. "..this."   
"Are you sure it's not because you're stalking a teenager?"   
Deadpool snatched the book back and shoved it into his suit. "Not stalking! And he's not a teenager. Is he?"   
"That's what people are saying."   
"Fuck." He groaned. "Well, I think the best way to deal with this is to, uh, meet him, and if he rejects me or ends up being twelve, then I'll kill him and forget it ever   
happened." 

\--

Steve yawned and scrunched his face up at the feeling of his arm being asleep. He rolled over, or at least tried, before becoming very aware of the situation he was in.   
Tony tilted his head upwards. "Good morning."   
"Good morning."   
"Sleep well?"   
"Y-yes."  
Tony smirked. "You look pale, Cap."  
"I'm fine," he pulled his arm from underneath the brunette and chuckled softly. "Sorry I fell asleep in your bed-"  
"Don't worry, it's not the first time I've shared my bed with a man."   
"Of course it isn't," Steve smiled charmingly.   
"You're welcome back anytime." Tony said playfully.   
"I'm sure I am."  
"You're not implying I'm easy, Rogers, are you?"   
"Not at all," Steve began climbing off the bed.   
"Because I'm not. You have to earn that."   
"I guess I earned that, then?"   
Tony shrugged. "I don't know."   
"Well, as much as I'm loving this vague conversation about sleeping with you, Stark," Steve gestured to the door. "I would like to change out of my suit and take a shower. I'll check on you after."   
The captain shut the door behind him and let out a breath he didn't even realize he had been holding in. Was Tony being serious, or the more likely, just sarcastic and cheeky?   
Steve couldn't deny the attraction he had had for Tony that bloomed once they began seeing more eye to eye. The events during the attack on New York brought them closer together, and for that, Steve was grateful, because even if nothing became of them romantically, he knew he had a friend.   
Inside the room, Tony sighed and rubbed his forehead.   
"Idiot," he muttered. Why did he have to go and say those stupid things to Rogers? He knew Steve thought he was immature, and Tony spewing out nonsense only made it worse.   
Ever since he was young, all he had heard about from his father was 'Captain America this, Captain America that,' and it grew old pretty quickly, but Tony secretly loved the captain for his bravery and heroisms that little Tony would never believe he himself could have.   
Not that he would ever admit any of this to anyone.   
Tony had tried to ignore the feelings he started having for Steve once Fury brought him in, but it was hard. His brain and body worked against him, and it cost him his relationship with Pepper. And while he didn't fully love her in the way he let on, he still cared about her because she was a dear friend to him, and he wanted to keep that, but she left, because of his mental health and obvious feelings for Steve.   
Tony shook his head and stood up carefully. He needed coffee, a shot, and some time spent in his lab to clear his head. 

\--

Peter said goodbye to Ned after school and began walking towards the corner where Happy usually picked him up when he suddenly remembered he had gotten a ride with Rhodey that morning.   
"Dammit," he groaned and pulled out his phone to call one of the team members.   
"Help!"   
A man's voice came from the rooftop of a nearby building, and Peter gasped lightly. He hurried to the alley a street down and quickly stripped out of his clothes and into his homemade suit.   
"I've gotta get Tony to make that new one," he reminded himself, then shot a web to pull himself up.   
"Help!"  
"I'm coming, I'm coming!" He swung from building to building, trying to spot the voice. He spotted a figure on one of the roofs, and he landed gracefully.   
There, sitting on an old crate, was a man in a red and black suit. He was posed much like Rose in Titanic, in the scene where Jack draws her. Peter didn't want to try and remember why he had watched that movie.   
"Why, hello," the man purred. "Is this too much? A bit much?"   
"W-were you the one calling for help?"   
"Yeah, that was me." The man climbed off the crate. "I had to get your attention somehow." He offered a hand. "The name's Pool, Deadpool. Big fan."   
Peter hesitantly shook it, and nodded. "Um, ha, yeah, cool. I'm..uh, I'm Spider-Man..which I guess you know already."   
"So how old are you? Above the age of consent?"   
"Excuse me?"   
"Nothing, nothing." Deadpool nodded and placed his hands on his hips. "Do you want to have dinner?"   
"Dinner?"   
"The third meal. The final meal before bed. Supper. Din din."   
"Um, I don't..uh,"   
"Right. Stupid question. Stupid, fucking-" Wade sighed and shrugged. "Sorry."   
"What? No, it's," Peter rubbed the back of his head. "I'm sorry, who are you?"  
"I'm Dead-"  
"Yeah, I-I know, I mean, like, are you a superhero, or.."   
Deadpool laughed. "No, not a superhero. More of a..freelancer. Think Robin Hood."   
Peter nodded and crossed his arms across his chest. He felt anxious- this guy wanted to hangout with him? Something seemed off.  
"Listen, Mr...Deadpool, ahem, I-uh, I'm expected back..yeah. Iron Man? He's expecting me, so, I-"  
"Right, right, you've gotta blast." Deadpool turned his head away. "That fucking goatee motherfucker-" he turned back towards Spider-Man. "Sorry. Let's hangout soon. Go get some rice bowls or something. Here,"   
He offered Peter a small card. Peter took it and inspected what it said. It was a phone number with a little drawing of Deadpool with a gun on the side.  
"Call you?" He stuttered. "You want me to call you?"   
"Yeah," Deadpool stated. "This shit faced loser is asking the company of Spider-Man. Do you accept, milady?"   
"I mean..yeah, I'll call you, I guess?"   
"Sweet Jesus!" Wade fist pumped the air. "This is jerk off material happiness. This is great. I feel like singing."   
"Listen, I have to go," Peter gestured behind him. "I'll..I'll see you."   
Wade watched as Spider-Man swung away. He smiled, then turned on his heel and began whistling the tune of 'Never Gonna Give You Up'.


	5. Chapter 5

"So, any news on Loki and the mystery woman?" Steve asked Natasha, who was wrapping her fists in boxing bandages. He hadn't seen Tony since he left his room that morning, and he was nervous that Tony was avoiding him. He decided that a couple of rounds of workout with Nat might help him get his mind off of things.   
"No, they completely disappeared. We couldn't track them." She shrugged. "Though, knowing our luck, they'll be back soon enough and make it known."   
"Probably," Steve nodded and placed his fists in front of himself.   
"So," Natasha copied his body language, and hopped on the balls of her feet. "You're signing the guardian forms for Peter?"   
"Tony and I are, yes." He threw a punch and she dodged it easily.   
"How do you know that he's not doing it for the publicity?" She hit Steve in the stomach, and he swiped his foot to hit her calf, causing her to fall into her back. She jumped right back up and dodged another punch.   
"I think he has a genuine caring for Peter," Steve explained while swerving to avoid Natasha's kicks. "I think he sees himself in him."   
Natasha took a step back and lowered her fists. "Speak of the devil."   
Steve turned around to see Peter tapping the code into the glass door. Peter stepped into the room and smiled. "Hey, I was wondering if you knew where Mr. Stark was? It's kind of an emergency."   
He was still dressed in his Spider-Man suit, minus the mask.   
"I-" Steve hesitated. "I haven't seen him since this morning."   
"Check the lab, Peter." Natasha offered.   
Peter nodded and left to check the lab. Tony always insisted that if he was in the lab, that he shouldn't be bothered, but Peter wanted to find out more about this Deadpool guy, and Tony knew everyone.   
On one of the lower floors, Tony nodded his head slightly to the beat of his blaring music. He shoved a drill into piece of tech he was holding.   
"Mr. Stark!"   
Tony looked up to see Peter waving from behind the glass door.   
"What do you want, kid? I'm working." He swallowed hard, remembering when his father would say the same thing. He hadn't meant to sound harsh.   
Tony stood up and opened the door. "What's up?"   
"I needed to tell you something important but FRIDAY wouldn't let me into the lab."   
"Because I have restrictions on the doors for when I'm busy."   
"I tried to explain that, sir." The AI piped in. "He's very insistent."   
"I just have to talk to you." Peter rocked on and off the balls of his feet. "Also, shouldn't you still be in bed?"   
With an eye roll, Tony opened the door wider and let the teenager in.   
"Okay, so this, this is crazy, Mr. Stark. You won't believe it."   
"Not if you don't tell me."   
"Right, right-"   
"Spit it out."   
"So I was right out of school, and I heard someone crying for help, and it was this guy. He was wearing a suit, and he had these two big swords!" Peter showed the size with his hands. "And he said he was a big fan of mine, and asked me if I was age of consent and-"   
"He what?" Tony's full attention was on Peter. "Did you get his name?"   
"Well, not his actual name."   
"What is it?"   
"Mr. Stark, are you okay?"   
Tony took a deep breath. "Yeah, I just-"  
"Boss, sorry to interrupt, Captain Rogers requires your support on the SHEILD floor, there's news regarding Loki and his friend." FRIDAY's voice sounded through the lab.   
"Shit," Tony muttered before throwing down his drill.

\--

Steve had gotten the Avengers all sitting down at a table on one of the main floors.   
"We have to be quick, because as we speak, Loki and that woman have been spotted downtown. Sam, Wanda, Vision, you're first wave. Myself, Clint, and Natasha will go in and help citizens and be backup if it comes to that. Remember-"  
"Wait, wait-" Peter stood up. "What about me?"   
"Kid, sit down." Tony grabbed Peter's arm and pulled him down. "The real question is why I was left out. Cap?"   
"Stark, you're still recovering. It hasn't even been twenty four hours. You need-"  
"Don't tell me what I need, Rogers. I'm sick of that."   
"Tony." Steve swallowed hard. "Please."   
Tony leaned back in his seat and remained silent.   
"Okay," Sam stood up. "So we're all good. Everyone go get changed and we'll meet on the copter pad in ten."   
Everyone dispersed, leaving Tony and Peter sitting by themselves.   
"Are you okay, Mr. Stark?"   
"Yep." He stood up. "I've got something for you, kid. Follow me." 

\--

Wade sat at the table in his crummy house, with Weasel to his left.   
"Pass me the red marker." Wade held out his hand.  
"So why are you making a banner?" Weasel handed the marker over.   
"Because," Wade replied, "I need to show Spidey my admiration for him. Publicly."  
"You don't think it's a little bit much? You gave him your phone number already, he'll call you when he's ready."   
"Jesus Christ, you sound like my fucking mother." Wade held up his work. "I'm practically Van Gogh. Without the suicidal tendencies, though."   
"With your reckless missions, I don't know.."   
"Only one thing left now."   
"What's that?"   
"To put it up." Wade rolled his eyes. "Obviously." 

\--

"Where is Loki?" Sam yelled at the mystery woman who smirked as he continued to miss hitting her.   
"Gone," she purred, then used magic to shield a blast from Vision.  
"Back to Asgard?" The android asked.   
"Asgard is dead." She snapped, then flew up to send a ball of energy towards the three heroes fighting her.   
Wanda writhed her hands and conjured up magic to absorb the energy before it hit them.  
"This is useless," she called out to her teammates. "We should call in the back up."   
"But Cap sent us in as the first responders. We can't let him down."  
"Mr. Wilson," Vision swerved to avoid a magic blast. "The captain will not think any less of you for asking for help." 

Within the next hour, backup was called in and together, the team fought with all that they could, but it soon became apparent that they weren't getting anywhere.  
Steve panted, and looked up at the floating woman. "I don't understand. Who are you? What do you want?"   
"I am Amora, the Enchantress, the most powerful sorceress in the nine realms, and I intend to kill each of the Avengers to allow forces more powerful than thee to take control over Midgard." She raised her hands, and a large, green glow surrounded her. She flung herself to the ground, and as she hit the ground a wave of magic knocked the team off their feet.   
"You'll never beat me, mortals."  
"That's where you're wrong, lady." A voice suddenly said.   
Steve rolled onto his side, feeling very dizzy, but looked up to see Spider-Man, in a new and improved suit, standing, ready to fight.  
"H-hey, guys. I know you said not to come but-"  
"And who are you?" Amora cocked her head.   
"I'm Spider-Man." Peter announced proudly. "Wait, we met before. I didn't think I was that forgettable."   
"Enough," she snarled, and suddenly Peter was floating in the air, through her magic, and then he went sailing over buildings and roads and crashed onto a rooftop.   
He laid still for a few minutes, feeling too sore to move.   
"Because you'll be an easy kill, you're first."   
Peter turned over to see Enchantress flying towards him menacingly.   
"Why do you want to kill us?" Peter stood up, and fired a web towards her foot, which she shot away easily.   
"Why should people like the Avengers get to rule Midgard?" She asked.  
"We don't rule anything. We just try to make the world a better place."   
"You rule without realization, Spider-Man." she landed on the roof gracefully. "Simply by having powers that most don't have, you rise above the public and control all that occurs. But a world without evil is impossible. There will always be something new to fight. And now, it's me."   
"Hold up," Captain America dropped to the roof from Falcon's hold. "Nobody is going to fight anyone because this isn't getting anywhere. Come with us, quietly, and we can help you-"   
"I'm sorry, Captain." Enchantress cocked her head. "You're right. It's better to continue with my plan and forget wasting time on each of you individually."   
She began to step back, and the heroes braced for whatever she was going to do.   
"I'll be seeing you later, Avengers. Be sure of it." 

\--

"And then she disappeared." Peter explained to Tony, who was wiping down Dum-E.   
"Sounds eventful."   
"And..um, Mr. Stark? Thank you for the suit." Peter sat on the desk beside the man and swung his feet back and forth. "It means a lot that you're starting to trust me and treat me..well, not like a kid."   
Tony shrugged. "It's no biggie. But, there are repercussions to wearing the suit. You put it on, and you have to realize what you're putting at risk."   
"I understand, Mr. Stark."   
"Tony."   
Peter rubbed the back of his head. "Y-yeah, sure. Sorry."   
"I don't imagine Cap was too happy that you showed up."   
"He talked to me after and said that I shouldn't have been there, blah blah blah, that I was yours and his responsibility, he mentioned you being immature-"  
"Me?" Tony wiped his forehead and smeared grease across it. "Hey, I made you a custom suit that will protect you better than your tights and googles ever could. I did you a favour. Tell him that." He went back to work on the robot. "But don't actually."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the somewhat boring chapter it took me forever to write it because I hate writing fillers but things will pick up I promise


End file.
